Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king's champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien.

The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass--and it's there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena's fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.

Honestly, I
have kept my eye on this series ever since I discovered it on Goodreads during
summer 2012. I’m not quite sure what has kept me from reading it so far, but
there’s no excuse since this book... This book was brilliant! My review is
mostly about the characters because that’s what
makes this thrilling read so special. There are a million things I liked about Throne of Glass, but since I don’t want
to bore you all to death, I’m going to name a few. *My apologies though, after writing my review, I couldn't help but notice that it's forever long. I am truly, terribly SORRY, BUT NOT THAT SORRY, my friends:)*

“Sometimes, the wicked will tell us things just to confuse us–to haunt our thoughts long after we've faced them.”

Main
characters

It isn’t a
New Adult novel per se, but I really appreciate the fact that the characters
are all older than 16. Celaena is 18, Dorian is 19 (if I’m not mistaken) and
Chaol is 22. They are still young, but they aren’t in their teenage years. Don’t get me wrong, they’re still
searching themselves, but they are way past the beginning of the search. There
were five points of views in this book, but the king and Kaltain rarely spoke
to us.

Most of the story is told by Celaena who is an amazing heroine. Her
strength was so inspiring. What she has had to endure in her life have made her
a captive inside her emotional walls and I enjoyed reading about Dorian, Chaol
and Nehemiah breaking these walls down piece by piece. Also, her character is
full of contradictions and I love it! The way she can kill a man without
breaking a sweat is just one side of this wonderful girl. Celaena is a great
friend; she has a wicked sense of humor, drools over books, loves to dress well and come
on! She devours a half bag of chocolate in one sitting. What’s not to like?!

Dorian and
Chaol. What can I say about these two young men? I really came to care about
both of them and even though I’ve been team Chaol from the beginning, I have no
issues with Dorian. He’s a prince while Chaol doesn’t have that privilege and they’re
still friends. They’re honorable, great and caring. I think that Celaena is the
best thing that could have happened to either of them since she brings out the
best qualities about them and vice versa. My only problem is that I wish there
had been more Chaol POV. Oh, and after that thank you hug in ch. 53? I can’t
wait to read Crown of Midnight.

Side
characters

There were
three side characters I truly enjoyed. One of them was Nox—the evercharming
fellow competitor of Celaena. He brought brightness to the training and these
Tests for the king’s amusement and I wonder if we’ll see him in the future. I
sure hope so.

Then we have Nehemiah. She was absolutely stunning as a person
and her fierce loyalty to her people and her country was breathtakingly
beautiful. I adored her friendship with Celaena. You know, there were two times
my eyes got misty during the process of reading Throne of Glass and both of them were when I read about these two
girls. It’s rare to find a friend like that.

The third
character I found absolutely compelling was Duke Perrington. Say whaaat???? O_O
“But Siiri, how could you find that
appalling man appealing in any way?” Well, my dear, I’d say that I wasn’t
charmed by him in any meaning of the word, but his cunning personality just intrigues
me to no end. I wonder what his end game is and I can’t wait to see what he and
the king have planned for next. It’s going to be bloody, I’m sure of it.

World, plot
and writing

I won’t
start telling you about the world because it’s something you have to experience
yourself. If you’ve read the book, you know what I’m talking about. I also
adored the writing which was intimate even though it was from third person
point of view. I rarely enjoy these kinds of narratives, but Maas made me feel
like a character in the book rather than
a reader outside the book. What’s
more, the plot was rather nicely paced. I did feel a bit forced to pick it up
when I was about halfway through, but I guess it was needed for character development, because despite being fantasy, this novel is very character-driven. From what I’ve heard, the sequel is non-stop action and plot-twists so… you
probably get my excitement.

So... Should you read it?

I think my
last review with such length was Clockwork
Princess, but I hope you don’t mind a tad longer review this time. There
was truly so much going on and the book was magical just as everyone claims it
to be. I can’t believe these books won’t stop until 2017. I know, right? That’s
plenty of goodness to look forward to ;) If you haven’t read Throne of Glass yet and love fantasy, swoon-worthy romance, kick-a characters and a great plot, I don’t know why you're still
sitting here, reading this review. Go grab it!!!

14 comments:

Yay! I'm so happy to hear you enjoyed this, Siiri. One of the things I loved about the this book was the 2 guys too. I didn't have any problem with either of them despite being on Team Chaol myself. Wait until you read the 2nd book. It's so intense and action-packed and full of twists and turns. I fell in love with the world-building even more myself. It ended on a sad note though, so I'm hoping book 3 won't be too brutal.Great review, Siiri. :)

Glad you enjoyed this Siiri! I think I was one of the few who struggled with it a bit, I just didn't quite feel as though Celaena was as big as of a badass as she claimed to be and was rumored to be because she didn't do a whole lot until the very end. I'm told that's absolutely not the case in the second book though, and Celaena is in fine form, so I'm looking forward to giving her another go. Loved Chaol something fierce (*high five*), I'm rooting for him to come out on top, but I guess I'll have to read book two to see if my wish comes true!!!

I really like these books even though I am 100% Team Chaol. I don't hate Dorian, he just doesn't do it for me. I'm nervous for the next book.I couldn't get into TID books. The only reason I read book 2 was because Ed Westwick narrated the audio. I could listen to him recite a phone book. He does such an AMAZING job. I couldn't get into the Clockwork Princess narrator after being serenaded by Ed :)

I really enjoyed this one too, the characters and the world were amazing. I was able to love the story without getting bogged down by details which sometimes is what turns me off from fantasy but instead loved her descriptions

I'm just dying to know how you got a 4.6 rating. lol Thst is specific! I've heard such great things about Throne of Glass, but I honestly just love how detailed and passionate this review is. Great job, sweetie!

Yay I'm so glad that you finally read this book Siiri and totally loved it. I remember when Sam lent me her copy, I didn't know much about this book at all or even if it would be for me, but after a few chapters, I was simply blown away. Maas' world that she had created was simply amazing and all the characters and beautiful interactions she wrote was just beautiful. I know you mentioned feeling a bit misty eyed with this book, but just you wait for Crown of Midnight!!! Gorgeous review my lovely!

Oh man, if you liked Throne of Glass, wait until you get to Crown of Midnight! IT'S EVEN BETTER. So many twists!I'm definitely Team Chaol as well, but I absolutely love Dorian as a character. They're both so awesome :D

It sounds like this book is very character driven. I have to admit, I like hearing that the characters are older in this one, I did not realize this and perhaps passed up on it too many times.It sounds like the main character in this book is amazing. I love leading ladies who are strong and are capable of holding their own. Great review!

I really loved this book and also was Team Chaol from the start, though I do love Dorian too. I love Celaena too, her toughness, her vulnerability, her ability to eat as much if not more chocolate than me in a single sitting. :-) I liked her even more in book two. Lovely review, can't wait to hear what you think of Crown of Midnight!

I've had a copy of this sitting on my shelf for ages, but I always have something newer and shinier to get to. Lol! I guess I need to pick this up soon seeing your gushing review. This girls sounds kick ass! Wonderful review, Siiri! :)

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